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-You may know me as the Head Chief First Researcher of Labs Z-9 and Z-14. There I fought valiantly to preserve rattlesnake DNA, and put it right where it belongs, in the husk of another feared predator.- Oh, and the tarantula hawk. Can't splice enough, I always say. Especially if you can make a magnificent Cazador.

Night stalkers are the creations of Dr. Borous in the Z-9 Crotalus DNA preservation lab of the Big MT, and are genetic hybrids of rattlesnake and coyote DNA. They growl, howl, and whimper like regular coyotes, but hiss, rattle, and inject venom into their prey like snakes. Their bodies are mostly dog-like, covered in a combination of fur and scales, their heads and tails, however, are more like that of a rattlesnake, including fangs and a forked tongue. Night stalkers' right eyes are blue with a round pupil, while their left eyes are yellow with an elliptical pupil, like a rattlesnake's. They lay eggs, like a snake, which can be used to prepare Mushroom Cloud. Their blood is also used as an ingredient in antivenom and hydra.

Night stalkers nest in caves across the Mojave Wasteland and can be found both inside the cave or in the nearby area. Packs of night stalkers can be frequently seen hunting at night east of Morning Star cavern near the nest with the radscorpion queen, south of the broc flower cave, and northwest of the cap counterfeiting shack. Their original breeding ground is the Z-9 Crotalus DNA preservation lab, located in the Big MT.

When they detect the Courier, they may strike with a leaping attack and a venomous bite or snap at the player character without leaping. While the venom is not as potent as their main competition, the cazador, it can pose a serious problem if multiple bites are received and untreated.

Night stalkers can pose a particular threat in low visibility, at night (when they are active) or in caverns. Carrying Cateye, Ghost Sight, or Nuka-Cola Quartz is advisable when fighting them in low-visibility conditions. They are especially dangerous inside their dens; packs are usually large in numbers, and twisting corridors make it difficult to detect exactly where they are.

Night stalkers found in Charleston cave and the lower level of the X-13 research facility have the ability to cloak, making them especially dangerous. The ones in Charleston cave gained this ability from chewing on a Stealth Boy, while the ones in the X-13 testing facility had the ability injected by an unknown scientist. As with any other cloaked enemy, these night stalkers can only be targeted in V.A.T.S. with the Enhanced Sensors companion perk provided by ED-E. It should be noted that their invisibility will not prevent them from causing ripples in any body of water they move in, negating their ability to ambush the player.

In appearance, young night stalkers are visually identical to fully grown night stalkers, but are smaller in size and have weaker attacks and less health. Although relatively weak, they are a nuisance when fought in groups of other young night stalkers and their fully grown brethren.

The legendary night stalker is a very large and very strong night stalker found in Bloodborne cave, which is west of Bitter Springs. In appearance, it is visually identical to standard night stalkers but differs only in size, being about the size of a bighorner. It is normally encountered in a pack with several regular night stalkers and young night stalkers and can kill a low level character in seconds.

It has the least amount of health out of all of the legendary creatures, but can kill a player under level 20 with about two to three bites. It is also the only legendary creature in the game that can be friendly towards the player if they have acquired the Animal Friend perk.

In some night stalker nests, such as Morning Star Cavern, the pack will be led by a den mother, a slightly larger female night stalker who looks after the young, and has a much stronger attack than standard night stalkers. If her young are harmed, she may go into a frenzy similar to that of the deathclaw mother.

pcps3xbox360 Walking through the Mojave Wasteland, it is possible that the player may see a night stalker with several heads and legs. This is actually a bug in the respawn. It happens when several spawn in the same place, resulting in a number of night stalker models within each other and bound in place. Because they cannot walk they can easily be killed. [verified]

ps3xbox360 Sometimes while encountering a night stalker, they will randomly die. [verified]

pcps3xbox360 Attempting to aim at the night stalker's head (in realtime or V.A.T.S.) often results in your shots missing. Possibly there is something off with the night stalker's collision/hit detection around its head, similar to what happens with evolved centaurs. For best results (and to avoid all of your shots missing in V.A.T.S.), target the body instead. [verified]

ps3xbox360pc If the night stalkers in Old World Blues are close enough to bite you, attempting to shoot them in V.A.T.S. mode may be completely ineffective, causing all your shots to miss. [verified]

pcBig MT night stalkers in the open air and the X-8 research center will panic if the player has Strength of 8 or higher. They'll be hostile, run to and fro, but not attack. A "normal" fearless variety is found inside Z-9 and X-13. [verified]